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Picture this use of GPS tracking: your plane lands in New Delhi, guided safely to the runway by an air traffic controller who is using GPS. When you exit the airport, you quickly find a rickshaw to take you to your hotel, and the driver is being directed by GPS. Next morning, you find a bus stop where a screen tells you based on real-time GPS information when the next bus will arrive. After a short ride to the station, you check another GPS screen and catch a train to a nearby city.

India’s government is adding GPS to buses and rickshaws within the capital city of New Delhi, and GPS is also being planned for the country’s railroads air traffic. From the smallest to the largest mode of public transportation, it seems India has caught on to the idea that GPS can make things much more efficient.

Whether it’s within a single city, across the country, or spanning the Indian Ocean (as the air traffic system is planned to do), each of these GPS networks is backed with the fleet tracking concept. Each vehicle in the target group is equipped with a little tracking device. The device sends frequent signals to satellites that can read its coordinates.

A computer connects that information to a spot on the map. Then the people who need to know where the vehicle is – such as the bus rider or the air traffic controller – see that information on a screen at the bus stop, a computer in an office, or even on a smart phone. With the most up-to-date information, they can make the best decisions. It saves time, energy, and fuel, and increases safety.
Of course, not all of these plans are without hitches. The government wants to pass the cost of rickshaw GPS on to the drivers, and a large group are striking to protest the high bills they expect to be charged with. The addition of GPS to the buses was supposed to be complete by March 31, but the lack of news seems to indicate that its introduction has been delayed.

The railroad and air systems are just in the beginning stages of development and it’s too early to tell how well they will be implemented. But in the long run, while the government may need to re-consider some of its choices about funding, making GPS information available to all public transportation consumers is a good step.

Article Written by Kandace Vyra